Follow by Email

Sunday, September 9, 2012

Temper Tantrums, and Racing

The past 2 weeks have had some ups and downs. I returned home from Oregon and had a little set back with an infection/cyst that knocked me out for a few days. Just couldn't run without getting a fever, and feeling quite aweful. But I was back on my feet by last weekend and managed 85 miles that week.

I "raced" for the first time in months on Labor Day, and it was lackluster at BEST. I ran 38:15 for a tough, hilly, muggy 10k, but managed second overall and first female. I had a lack of poise, during the race, and ran slower than I should have, but took away a valuable lesson! DO NOT PANIC! haha! I was racing with Ryan, who happened to be the only person to beat me, and when the going got tough...I threw a temper tantrum! In true 3 year old fashion, I pounded my fist on the cart, cried to my mom yelling "BUT MOM I WANT THE DOLL!! PLEASE!! ahhh!!!" haha! Maybe it was a little less obvious than that, but that is pretty much what happened inside my head! Hindsight, really a stupid waste of energy and not exactly the sort of response you would expect from an athlete that has raced thousands of times. It was hillarious! God willing I will keep my head on better at Akron! Hopefully I got that out of my system!

I had a good workout at the track this week getting in some miles of work faster than marathon pace, and staying in control the entire way. Then Saturday while hundreds of others were running along the blue line, Tony, Ryan, Nicole, and I got in a good long run. I did the last 6 of 23 at marathon pace, and I was able to handle the workload better than I expected and certainly better than I had in the race on Monday!
It was fun to see so many people out chasing down their dreams on that blue line! There is really something special about seeing so many people working hard toward their unique goals ranging from finishing their first marathon, to qualifying to Boston, or hoping for a win in a few weeks. It was really motivational to be a part of it! I couldn't help but think of how I hoped to race. My mind driffed to last year, and the way the race had gotten the best of me, yet the struggle made me appreciate the finish so much more. I teared up a bit when I saw Angel Falls Coffee shop. It always brings a bit of a smile and a chokes me up a bit because that was the point last year when I knew I could achieve my goal. It was a lot of fun to think about the race and know so many others on the course were thinking of the same things.

This week was a step in the right direction, and I was happy to get in 93 miles and have a good week behind me after the week I had prior. It is really hard to believe that we are only 3 weeks out from the race. I am ready to embrace the aggony and try to reach the goal I set a year ago of winning two years in a row! I am getting eager to be in the thick of things and of course see how it pans out! After all, chances are the fascination...3 weeks to go.